Three forwarding groups fork up US$28.9-m for price fixing

Plaintiffs in a class action lawsuit alleging price-fixing in the freight forwarding industry have asked a US federal judge to approve a US$28.9-million settlement reached with three of the 63 defendants. The litigation started three years ago, when Precision Associates, Mail Boxes Etc, and JCK Industries Inc accused companies of violating the Sherman Antitrust Act by conspiring to inflate and fix charges and filed suit in the US District Court. Last week, the plaintiffs filed a motion asking US District Judge John Gleeson to preliminarily approve settlements with three operator groups – Schenker, EGL and Vantec. In addition to paying millions, the firms that have offered settlements have agreed to help the plaintiffs with their case against the other defendants. These include DHL Express and UPS, according to a memorandum in support of the motion. In October 2007, the US Department of Justice and government agencies around the world – including SA - raided the offices of numerous defendants in connection with suspected anti-competitive practices in the industry.